The purpose of this Program is to provide Ph.Ds. and M.Ds. opportunities for post-doctoral training in the study of the physiology of the control systems that govern major reproductive processes in mammals with emphasis on the use on non-human primate paradigms. Training in approaches that attempt to straddle the physiological and molecular levels of analysis will be encouraged, and translational research will be a prominent theme. Specific areas of study being pursued by the training faculty encompass developmental neuroendocrinology, neurobiology and pathophysiology of puberty, testicular and ovarian function, polycystic ovary syndrome, stress and the hypothalamic-pituitary-ovarian axis, CREB as a survival factor, signal transduction in Sertoli cells, physiology of inhibin, role of co-activators in determining steroid hormone receptor activity, steroid receptor trafficking, estrogen replacement and brain function, leptin and hypothalamic neuropeptide secretion. The Program will be administered by a Steering Committee composed of basic and clinical scientists, and post-doctoral fellows will remain in the Program for two to three years. Although only two stipends are requested in this proposal, it is anticipated that in any one year as many as 10 post-doctoral fellows will be training at the Pittsburgh Center for Research in Reproductive Physiology. Trainees must have either a Ph.D. or M.D. degree, and have demonstrated a commitment to research in reproductive physiology or a related area. Training will be provided in the classical preceptorial mode. Opportunities for interdisciplinary and collaborative approaches to problems in reproductive biology will be actively encouraged by the Steering Committee. Training faculty hold primary appointments in both basic and clinical departments within the Departments of the Health Sciences Schools, including Cell Biology and Physiology, Medicine, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Pediatrics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacology and Psychiatry. It is the aim of the Steering Committee that, upon completion of the Program, fellows will be able to compete for academic appointments and to initiate their own independent research endeavors. This Program will utilize the research laboratories of the training faculty, which are located within the School of Medicine or at one of its affiliated institutions; namely, School of Pharmacy, Childrens Hospital, Magee-Womens Hospital, and Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. The Program?s faculty are also members or affiliates of the U54 Center for Research in Reproductive Physiology and, therefore, training will be subserved by the Center?s research.
| Hermann, Brian P; Sukhwani, Meena; Hansel, Marc C et al. (2010) Spermatogonial stem cells in higher primates: are there differences from those in rodents? Reproduction 139:479-93 |
| Chandran, U R; DeFranco, D B (1992) Internuclear migration of chicken progesterone receptor, but not simian virus-40 large tumor antigen, in transient heterokaryons. Mol Endocrinol 6:837-44 |
